Not a "college applicant?"
Sometimes, I'm not exactly tactful.
Case in point, last week I was sitting with an 11th grader, reviewing his grades, PSATs, extracurricular activities and preliminary, highly selective, college list.
I told him that his record was pretty strong. But..."Don't take this the wrong way," I offered.
When you throw your hat into the ring with thousands of kids with equal or better accomplishments, you become something else:
A Dime a Dozen
Colleges are businesses, they sort, exclude and choose kids for acceptance based on their own internal desires and guidelines, some of which have nothing to do with an applicant's qualifications.
A LOT of which, actually.
So if you agree that colleges are actually in business (despite their non-profit status - hah), you might see why I implore my clients to understand things a bit differently about themselves:
They Too Are in Business
They're in the business of getting into the colleges they want, and to win scholarships.
I told this particular kiddo that he should not think of himself as, Steve, college applicant.
Instead, he is a MARKETER of Steve, college applicant. It's a different mindset.
That means understanding your market (college admissions officers): what do they want? What are their problems?
Then optimizing your application so that it solves their problems or addresses their wants and needs.
A winning college application maximizes the applicant's strengths, minimizes weaknesses (they all have them) and serves to make the case, This is why you should choose me over the rest of them.
Incidentally and more importantly (to me): this ability -- to persuade, to advocate for yourself -- is not merely a "get into college" skill.
It's a "life skill." The most successful people in life have mastered this skill. Yes, they're good at their craft (doctor, accountant, lawyer, financial advisor, etc.) but that's not enough to achieve financial, reputational or other measures of success. They have learned how to convince their audience of their value.
It's the most important skill that you can ever acquire.
If your high school senior needs this kind of assistance, we're about to pull the plug on our "express", last minute, 11th hour college essays and applications November Sprint program.
If you're in a cold sweat about getting everything done -- apps, essays, financial aid too -- go here now, before this disappears quicker than a Jets fan's hopes...
- Andy Lockwood
P.S. The November Sprint is a last minute, 11th hour college advising fast pass for high school seniors.
And -- this just added -- we'll take care of all financial aid applications too!
This bonus alone could pay off in an amount much greater than the tuition for the program.
There's a payment plan option too.
